something reduced to its minimal form
"the battalion was a mere skeleton of its former self"
"the bare skeleton of a novel"
a scandal that is kept secret
"there must be a skeleton somewhere in that family's closet"
the hard structure (bones and cartilages) that provides a frame for the body of an animal
"The X-ray revealed that the patient's skeleton was intact despite the severe fall."
the internal supporting structure that gives an artifact its shape
"the building has a steel skeleton"
The system that provides support to an organism, internal and made up of bones and cartilage in vertebrates, external in some other animals.
"During the winter sports competition, the skeleton athletes raced headfirst down the icy track on small sleds while lying flat on their stomachs."
A type of tobogganing in which competitors lie face down, and descend head first.
In plain English: A skeleton is your body's internal frame made of bones that holds you up and protects your organs.
"The skeleton found in the attic was missing its skull."
Usage: Use "skeleton" as the noun for an animal's internal framework or external exoskeleton rather than its verb form. When referring to tobogganing, specify that it involves competitors lying face down and descending head first.
to reduce to a skeleton; to skin; to skeletonize
"The predator stripped the carcass down until nothing but its bony framework remained."
In plain English: To skeleton something means to remove all its non-essential parts until only the basic structure remains.
"The company skeleton crew worked through the night to finish the project before the deadline."
The word "skeleton" comes from New Latin sceleton, which was borrowed from the Ancient Greek term for a dried-up or mummified body. It ultimately traces back to an ancient root meaning "to parch," reflecting how early anatomists described bones as desiccated remains after flesh decayed.